Grain silo with sidewall panels having offset edges

ABSTRACT

A storage silo has a cylindrical wall formed with a plurality of ring structures stacked one upon another. Each ring structure is formed with a plurality of sidewall panels connected end to end with a vertical joint between horizontally adjacent sidewall panels. The plurality of ring structures have at least one upper ring structure and at least one lower ring structure positioned below the upper ring structure, with a portion of the upper ring structure overlapping the lower ring structure to form a horizontal joint. The upper lower ring structure are formed with sidewall panels in a layered arrangement. Each sidewall panel has a middle portion, an offset upper portion and an offset lower portion. The offset upper portion and the offset lower portion of the sidewall panel are offset from the middle portion.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/914,264, filed Nov. 27, 2019, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of Invention

This invention relates generally to storage silos for material such as grain, and more particularly to sidewall panels for silos that have offset end portions.

Description of Related Art

Storage silos used to receive and store materials such as grain and the like are typically constructed of a hollow cylindrical structure having a circular sidewall and a roof attached to the upper end of the sidewall. The storage silo is filled through an opening near the top of the silo with a grain auger or conveyor. The sidewall of conventional storage silos are typically comprised of a plurality of panels made of corrugated sheet metal that are bolted together in series with one another to form a plurality of rings, wherein each of the rings of panels are attached to one another to form the sidewall. Typically the lower edge of the upper ring overlaps and is on the outside of the upper edge of the lower ring so that water doesn't enter into the storage silo through the joint and spoil the contents of the silo. Conventional storage silos range from 12 feet in diameter to over 150 feet in diameter with capacities up to about two million bushels or more.

As storage silos become larger in diameter and/or height, the forces applied to the sidewall and particularly the joints between adjacent panels increase because of the increase of particulate material (e.g. grain) stored within that applies an outward force to the sidewall. One of the limitation is that only two panels of the sidewall are connected together creating a single shear point for the bolts requiring stronger bolts to be used to avoid grain bin failure. However, when stronger bolts are used, conventional storage bins still are prone to failure by the tearing of the sheet metal used for the sidewalls because of the significant forces being applied to the distal edges of the sheet metal panels.

With larger storage silos, it has become necessary to provide sidewall panels in laminates of double, triple or possibly even more layers to obtain the necessary strength. However, using multiple layers leads to other problems, particularly with the alignment of bolt holes between the multiple layers. The circular ring formed of the inner panels is going to have a smaller diameter than the ring formed by the outer panels. Additionally, Because the lower edge of the panels is placed on the outside of the panels of the ring below and the upper edge of the panels are placed on the inside of the panels of the ring above, the sidewall panels are not arranged completely vertical, but are forced to have a slight outward slope from top to bottom. Thus, when assembling the sidewall, the bolt holes may be off in both the vertical and the horizontal directions, making fit up of the panels difficult.

Because of the inherent problems with the related art, there is a need for a new and improved sidewall panels for storage silos to enable better fit between the multiple layers.

OVERVIEW OF THE INVENTION

In one embodiment, the invention is directed to a storage silo having a cylindrical wall formed with a plurality of ring structures stacked one upon another. Each ring structure is formed with a plurality of sidewall panels connected end to end with a vertical joint between horizontally adjacent sidewall panels. The plurality of ring structures have at least one upper ring structure and at least one lower ring structure positioned below the upper ring structure, with a portion of the upper ring structure overlapping the lower ring structure to form a horizontal joint. The upper lower ring structure are formed with sidewall panels in a layered arrangement. Each sidewall panel has a middle portion, an offset upper portion and an offset lower portion. The offset upper portion and the offset lower portion of the sidewall panel are offset from the middle portion.

These and other features and advantages of this invention are described in, or are apparent from, the following detailed description of various exemplary embodiments of the systems and methods according to this invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above mentioned and other features of this invention will become more apparent and the invention itself will be better understood by reference to the following description of embodiments of the invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a storage silo having a cylindrical sidewall;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a portion of the sidewall made of a plurality of sidewall panels arranged in a plurality of rings;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged cutaway perspective view the seam between an upper ring and a lower ring in the sidewall showing the multiple layers of sidewall panels;

FIG. 4A is an end view of a sidewall panel;

FIG. 4B is an end view of an upper portion of the sidewall panel of FIG. 4A; and

FIG. 4C is an end view of a lower portion of the sidewall panel of FIG. 4A.

Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the views of the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

The invention will now be described in the following detailed description with reference to the drawings, wherein preferred embodiments are described in detail to enable practice of the invention. Although the invention is described with reference to these specific preferred embodiments, it will be understood that the invention is not limited to these preferred embodiments. But to the contrary, the invention includes numerous alternatives, modifications and equivalents as will become apparent from consideration of the following detailed description.

FIG. 1 illustrates a material storage silo 10 configured to stockpile and store material such as grain and the like. One will understand that the storage silo 10 may be any tank, bin or other structure, either freestanding or relying on common architecture, used to store a material such as grain. The following disclosure will describe the invention referring to the material as grain, but it is to be understood that the system may be used with materials other than grain without departing from the scope of the invention. As shown, the storage silo 10 has a cylindrical wall 12 and a conical roof 14 configured to prevent moisture and rain from entering the interior of the storage silo 10. The cylindrical wall 12 is formed with a plurality of ring structures 16, with each ring structure 16 formed from individual sidewall panels 20 connected end to end to form the ring structure 16. A plurality of the ring structures 16 are stacked upon one another and attached together with fasteners to form the cylindrical wall 12 of the storage silo 10 and the roof 14 is attached to the uppermost ring structure 16. The sidewall panels 20 are comprised of sheet metal. The sidewall panels 20 of the storage silo 10 are desirably connected to suitable channel stiffeners (not shown) as would be understood by one skilled in the art.

Turning now to FIG. 2 , a portion of the cylindrical wall 12 is shown. The sidewall panels 20 may be comprised of any material or structure commonly utilized for the construction of storage silos 10. Desirably, the sidewall panels 20 are made of 5 gage to 9 gage sheet metal, however other thicknesses may be used. Each sidewall panel 20 preferably comprises of an elongated rectangular structure such as, for example, 10 feet long by 4 feet high. However, one skilled in the art will understand that other sizes for the sidewall panels 20 may be used. The portion of the wall 12 shown includes a portion of a lower ring structure 16A with sidewall panels 20 positioned end to end to form a vertical joint 22 and connected with a plurality or rows of fasteners 24. A portion of an upper ring structure 16B is positioned above the lower ring structure 16 to form a horizontal joint 26.

Turning also now to FIG. 3 , in the illustrated embodiment the upper ring structure 16 is formed with three layered sidewall panels 20 and the lower ring structure 16 is formed with three layered sidewall panels 20. However, one skilled in the art will understand that more or fewer layered sidewall panels 20 may be used. For example, the cylindrical wall 12 may have two layered sidewall panels 20 or may have four layered sidewall panels 20. The three sidewall panels 20 in the lower ring structure 16A include an inner sidewall panel 20A, a middle sidewall panel 20B, and an outer sidewall panel 20C. The three sidewall panels 20 in the upper ring structure 16B include an inner sidewall panel 20A, a middle sidewall panel 20B, and an outer sidewall panel 20C. A bottom portion of the sidewall panels 20 in the upper ring structure 16B overlays an upper portion of the sidewall panels 20 in the lower ring structure 16A, with the upper ring structure 16B on the outside of the lower ring structure 16A. Each of the sidewall panels 20 has fastener holes 28 that align when the sidewall panels 20 are brought together so that a suitable fastener (e.g., bolt) 24 can pass through the aligned holes 28 of the layered sidewall panels 20 of the upper and lower ring structures 16 to form the horizontal joint 26.

Turning now to FIGS. 4A, 4B and 4C, each sidewall panel 20 has a middle portion 30, an offset upper portion 32 and an offset lower portion 34. In the illustrated embodiment, the middle portion 30 is formed with a corrugation pattern. The corrugation pattern has a repeating shape comprising a plurality of ridges 40 alternating with a plurality of troughs 42. In one embodiment, the corrugation pattern of the middle portion 30 is a sine wave pattern. However, other patterns may be used in the middle portion 30 such as other corrugated designs such a trapezoidal or other repeating pattern, or patterns having combination of both sine wave and trapezoidal-type patterns. Additionally, it is contemplated that the middle portion may have a flat profile without departing from the scope of the invention. As best seen in the detail of FIG. 4B, in one exemplary embodiment, the sidewall panel 20 has a corrugation length 44 between adjacent troughs 42 of 4.000 inches (10.160 cm) with a length 46 between adjacent ridges 40 and troughs 42 of 2.000 (5.180 cm) inches and a corrugation depth 48 of 0.500 (1.270 cm) inches. However, these dimensions are for example purposes only and other corrugation dimensions may be used.

The offset upper portion 32 and the offset lower portion 34 of the sidewall panel 20 are offset from the middle portion 30. In one embodiment, the offset upper portion 32 and the offset lower portion 34 are formed with a shape other than the shape of the corrugation pattern of the middle portion 30. Desirably, the offset upper portion 32 has a length 50 of between about 1.00 inches (2.54 cm) and about 3.00 inches (7.62 cm), and in one preferred embodiment has a length of 2.310 inches (5.867 cm). The offset upper portion 32 has a flat section 52 and a transition section 54 that transitions into the corrugated middle section 30 in a trough 42 of the middle section. In one embodiment, the offset upper portion 32 is offset from the deepest portion of the trough 42 by an offset distance 56 such that the offset upper portion 32 lies in a plane that extends downward through the troughs 42 of the middle portion 30. Desirably the upper offset distance 56 is between about 0.040 inches (1.016 mm) and about 0.225 inches (5.715 mm) and in one preferred embodiment is about 0.050 inches (1.270 mm).

As best seen in the detail of FIG. 4C, the offset lower portion 34 has a flat section 62 and a transition section 64 that transitions into the middle portion 30 in a ridge 40 of the middle portion 30. Desirably, the offset lower portion 34 has a length 60 of between about 1.00 inches (2.54 cm) and about 3.00 inches and in one preferred embodiment has a length of 1.713 inches (4.351 cm). The length 60 dimension of the offset lower portion 34 is shown as being smaller than the length 50 dimension of the offset upper portion 32. In one embodiment, the offset lower portion 34 is offset from the peak point of the ridge 40 by an offset distance 66 such that the offset lower portion 34 lies in a plane that extends upward through the ridges 40 of the middle portion 30. Desirably the lower offset distance 66 is between about 0.400 inches (1.016 cm) and about 0.800 inches (2.032 cm) and in one preferred embodiment is about 0.500 inches (1.270 cm).

Returning to FIG. 3 , it is seen that the offset lower portion 34 from the upper ring section 16B mates with the offset upper portion 32 from the lower ring section 16A. However, one skilled in the art will understand that the offset upper portion 32 need not be completely flat, but may have some curvature as long as the offset upper portion 32 mates flushly with the offset lower portion 34 of the upwardly adjacent sidewall panel 20 to which it mates with. Additionally, where the offset upper and lower portions 32, 34 transition into the middle portion 30 and how the offset upper and lower portions mate with each other enable the sidewall panels 20 of the cylindrical wall 12 to be substantially vertical when a plurality of ring structures 16 are formed on top of each other with the horizontal joints 26 causing little to no inward slope even if the middle portion 30 has a flat profile. This enables the position of the bolt holes 28 to be positioned in the sidewall panels 20 so that the holes 28 will align when the different layers of sidewall panels 20 are brought together. It is believed that the bolt holes 28 on the inner panel 20A will need to be in slightly different positions than the bolt holes 28 on the outer panel 20C such that during manufacture of the panels 20, panels will need to be specified as an inner sidewall panel 20A or an outer sidewall panel 20C, using the offset upper and lower portions 32, 34 enable a more consistent and repeatable production process.

The foregoing has broadly outlined some of the more pertinent aspects and features of the present invention. These should be construed to be merely illustrative of some of the more prominent features and applications of the invention. Other beneficial results can be obtained by applying the disclosed information in a different manner or by modifying the disclosed embodiments. Accordingly, other aspects and a more comprehensive understanding of the invention are obtained by referring to the detailed description of the exemplary embodiments taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 

1. A storage silo having a cylindrical wall formed with a plurality of ring structures stacked one upon another, with each ring structure being formed with a plurality of sidewall panels connected end to end with a vertical joint between horizontally adjacent sidewall panels of said plurality of sidewall panels, wherein the plurality of ring structures comprises at least one upper ring structure and at least one lower ring structure positioned below the upper ring structure, with a portion of the upper ring structure overlapping the lower ring structure to form a horizontal joint, wherein the upper ring structure is formed with sidewall panels of said plurality of sidewall panels in a layered arrangement, and the lower ring structure is formed with sidewall panels of said plurality of sidewall panels in a layered arrangement, wherein each sidewall panel comprises: a middle portion; an offset upper portion; and an offset lower portion, wherein the offset upper portion and the offset lower portion of the sidewall panel are offset from the middle portion.
 2. The storage silo of claim 1 wherein the layered sidewall panels in the lower ring structure comprises an inner sidewall panel, a middle sidewall panel, and an outer sidewall panel and the layered sidewall panels in the upper ring structure comprise an inner sidewall panel, a middle sidewall panel, and an outer sidewall panel.
 3. The storage silo of claim 1 wherein the middle portion is formed with a corrugation pattern.
 4. The storage silo of claim 3 wherein the corrugation pattern has a repeating shape comprising a plurality of ridges alternating with a plurality of troughs.
 5. The storage silo of claim 4 wherein the corrugation pattern of the middle portion comprises a sine wave pattern.
 6. The storage silo of claim 4 wherein the corrugation pattern of the middle portion comprises a trapezoidal pattern.
 7. The storage silo of claim 4 wherein the corrugation pattern of the middle portion comprises a repeating pattern.
 8. The storage silo of claim 1 wherein middle portion comprises a flat profile.
 9. The storage silo of claim 4 wherein the offset upper portion and the offset lower portion are formed with a shape other than the shape of the corrugation pattern of the middle portion.
 10. The storage silo of claim 4 wherein the offset upper portion has a length of between about 1.00 inches (2.54 cm) and about 3.00 inches.
 11. The storage silo of claim 4 wherein the offset upper portion has a flat section and a transition section that transitions into the corrugated middle section in a trough of the middle section.
 12. The storage silo of claim 11 wherein the offset upper portion is offset from a deepest portion of the plurality of troughs by an upper offset distance such that the offset upper portion lies in a plane that extends downward through the plurality of troughs of the middle portion.
 13. The storage silo of claim 12 wherein upper offset distance is between about 0.040 inches (1.016 mm) and about 0.225 inches (5.715 mm).
 14. The storage silo of claim 4 wherein the offset lower portion has a flat section and a transition section that transitions into the middle portion in a ridge of the middle portion.
 15. The storage silo of claim 14 wherein the offset lower portion has a length of between about 1.00 inches (2.54 cm) and about 3.00 inches.
 16. The storage silo of claim 14 wherein the offset lower portion is offset from a peak point of the plurality of ridges by a lower offset distance such that the offset lower portion lies in a plane that extends upward through the plurality of ridges of the middle portion.
 17. The storage silo of claim 16 wherein the lower offset distance is between about 0.400 inches (1.016 cm) and about 0.800 inches (2.032 cm). 